How Lego has inspired my brand

Who inspires the brand that is your business?

That was the prompt shared by Sapna Pieroux, at one of the Atomicon round tables earlier this year - and it probably came at a good time for me: some readers may recall that after 20 years of freelancing / self employment, I'd decided to start taking it seriously so this is exactly the kind of reflection I need to get into doing more of.

In that round table, my initial thoughts turned to the Lego group (and not just because I have a professional affinity with them as a certificate Lego Serious Play facilitator).

How are Lego and I are alike?

I think it's because I see a lot of their ethos and thinking in my own approach to how I've tried to build and deliver my own business:

1) there's their value of play, and stressing the importance of it - something that reflects one of my business' own core values (more about that in my impact reports, if you're interested...).

2) as a business, they're constantly experimenting even though they know it may lose them money (and spectacularly has in the past, in the times that they've found themselves on the brink of bankruptcy). I've also taken experimental approaches to trying out new offers (such as my books), and trying to develop collaborations with peers that would have seen new products and services being launched (had my co-conspirators' own circumstances not suddenly changed meaning they had to withdraw...).  

3) they're concerned about inclusion and accessibility (anyone else remember the braille bricks?) - my own approaches to this have meant I've been asked by national foundations to upskill their teams on designing practices to ensure greater accessibility and psychological safety for everyone they find themselves supporting through their respective awards.

4) and they're also keen to try and support wider communities through their Foundation, as well as offering free magazines and bags of bricks for children and families that might otherwise struggle to afford them - which mirrors my own commitments to offering pro bono, and trying to support / advocate for unpaid carers who, like me, are also self-employed or freelancing and so otherwise hidden, unrecognised, and unsupported.

How have others recognised my business' affinity with Lego? 

And it's not just me who's thought the above through like this - at the start of 2023 (over 3 years ago), Paul Kelly of Pandek Solutions presented me with a custom Lego minifigure resplendent with top hat (the top hat being a nod to my technically being a legally recognised Lord...)   

So - who's business has most inspired you to shape the business you're leading today, and how are others around you recognising this?

Why am I writing a second volume to a book that I never meant to publish in the first place?

Why did I write a book about imposter syndrome?

A few years ago, I found myself writing a book about imposter syndrome that I never meant to.

In doing so, I ignored and broke nearly all the rules and guidance that you're supposed to follow as a writer of business books - but somehow the book still became a global best-seller, won an award, and got me uninvited from speaking at a conference.

And in never intending to have written it, I also didn't really have any specific goals or ambitions for what it might achieve.

What came after being published, and what drew me back to write a sequel?

In the years that followed it being released into the wild, lots of unexpected things happened:

- I got invited to guest on various podcast shows;

- I was interviewed by national sector bodies about the books' ideas;

- and most importantly, people started to share their own stories about being an imposter, and asking me questions about these feelings that my original researches had never identified or unearthed.

All of which led me to think that my journeys with imposter syndrome wasn't nearly as complete as I thought they were.

Same story, but different lead characters

The original book was written from the perspective of my wanting to understand why it was that what everyone says about imposter syndrome didn't quite feel right, but I could never put my finger on why. Trawling through 50 years of published medial journals and academic research papers helped me figure that out - and led to those I shared my notes with all seperately encouraging me to put it out there as a book. 

How people responded to that book has highlighted other perspectives and ideas about the feeling of being an imposter that my original research hadn't surfaced. So I went back to the archives and journals to dig deeper to help respond to their new questions and thoughts that they were now having.

And it's this deeper digging into additional and fresh perspectives about imposter syndrome that's led me to be writing a sequel - only this time it isn't about my journey exploring imposter syndrome, but acting as intentional and deliberate guide to others who were keen to start their own respective journeys into this land of self-doubt...

Probably still not the read you think it might be...

Without wanting to give away too many spoilers about this second volume, I can clarify that unlike in the first book, there are no appearances by Batman, Suzy Eddie Izzard, or toothbrushes. But Sherlock Holmes, Dr Who, and Monty Python are in the wings - and it's helpful if you have a passport to hand... 

And when will this return to the land of imposters be hitting the bookshelves?

As some may know, my approach to writing doesn't subscribe to any of the usual expected patterns or models. My hope is that it'll be out in time for Christmas (2026), but watch out for future occasional updates...#

(if you want to catch up with the original book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09V25N8G6)